Whispers
by NiteJasmine
Summary: Lt. Caine has been kidnapped by a brutal killer seeking revenge, intent on destroying him and everything he loves. Fighting for survival, Horatio must find a way to stay alive long enough for help to find him… Rated M: Language, Violence.
1. Chapter 1

**WHISPERS**

**A CSI Miami FanFic**

**By NiteJasmine**

**Lt. Caine has been kidnapped by a brutal killer seeking revenge, and intent on destroying him and everything he loves. Fighting for survival, Horatio must find a way to stay alive long enough for help to find him…**

**Then Horatio learns that the new love of his life, Cassandra Cordell, has also fallen victim to his captor's sadistic hands… is she still alive or has this madman taken yet another love from him?**

**Rated M for strong language and graphic violence.**

**I don't own any characters from CSI Miami, I just borrow them on occasion…**

3PM - Miami

Carlos Montigo leaned his massive frame back against the large heavy metal desk, one of the only things left in the middle of the large dusty room. He looked around the sparsely lit expanse and a crooked smile came to his face. This was going exactly as he had planned and dreamed about for so long… He wiped his hands on the already bloody towel and lit a cigarette, then took his time smoking it, listening to the heavy labored breathing coming from the other side of the room, and soaking it all in…

This was a perfect location… perched up in the middle of the 8th floor of an old condemned office building. Demolition had been started, but the developer had gone broke, and the crumbling building had been just sitting here for over 2 years. Nobody in the shady area ever gave this old dilapidated building a second thought, it was dangerous, and had become just a part of the landscape of this run-down neighborhood. It was a forgotten part of Miami.

He eyed his prized prey and another smug grin came to his face. The great Horatio Caine was finally right here, right now, and at his mercy. The strong Lieutenant was bound to a small metal chair, by his own handcuffs and several wraps of duct tape. He was bruised and bloody from the beating, but he was definitely not broken… not yet anyway. And way up here, nobody was going to hear the screams…

Kidnapping the savvy, street-smart Lieutenant had been no easy task. But he had managed to get the upper hand by plunging the sedative-filled needle into the back of Horatio's shoulder, and it was only a couple seconds before the drug kicked in and the CSI legend sagged to the floor unconscious.

Once he had gotten Caine up here and had allowed him some time to wake up, he had rushed headlong into a rather long and enthusiastic rout of tearing into his helpless captive with absolute abandon, hammering him with heavy blows, inflicting as much pain onto this man as he could. But, stopping to catch his breath, Carlos had realized that he didn't want to rush this… he had waited far too long for this moment, and he wanted to relish and savor absolutely every second of this red-haired policeman's anguish, before Carlos finally decided to end the trouble-maker's life once and for all. He would have his revenge. For all those years in that hell hole of a prison. All because of him. Yeah, he would have his revenge tonight.

Carlos took a deep breath, tossed his cigarette down onto the concrete floor and crushed it out with the heel of his heavy boot. He toyed with a few of the other items on the desk, Horatio's cell phone, badge, and Sig 9mm pistol. He chuckled, and flung the Sig across the room on the opposite direction, where it skittered across the cement flooring and disappeared from sight. He tucked the cell phone and badge into his jeans pockets. Nice souvenirs. Then he picked up his own gun and slowly strolled back towards his blue-eyed captive again. Carlos realized just how much he was really enjoying this. He was really going to make Caine pay, and pay dearly. And he was just getting started.

"Hey there, Lieutenant Caine," he growled, grabbing at a tuft of the man's red hair and yanking his face upward, eliciting a soft grunt from the restrained cop. "You're not falling asleep on me are you?"

Horatio forced his eyes to half-open, still trying to hide the level of severe pain he was feeling. His bruised and battered body was starting to betray him though. He knew the sadistic man was enjoying his pain, and he also knew with the savage beating he had already endured, that his reserves were quickly being tapped. Horatio knew that if his captor kept up the current pace of brutality, he wasn't sure how much longer he could stay conscious. And losing consciousness was a fairly sure signing of his own death warrant. Once Carlos ran out of fuel for his vengeful fire, Horatio would be finished off without hesitation. And he could only shudder internally at the thought of where this maniac's rage would target next. His son? His team? His love? No. Somehow he had to protect them, no matter what. Through the gathering fog of pain, Horatio struggled to conjure up some means of escape, some thread of a plan, but so far he had absolutely nothing but hope. He knew that that every Law Enforcement Department in the entire City of Miami was out diligently looking for him. He could only hope that one of them would find him, before it was too late.

"I must admit, Horatio," his captor purred to him, "you've held up OK so far."

Carlos leaned in close to Horatio's ear before whispering his words. "But you have a long way to go before you will match how long your pretty little girlfriend lasted."

Horatio's mind spun. _No. Not Cassie. That can't be. No..._

Carlos intently watched his prisoner's face, knowing he had hit a major nerve.

Carlos released his fist full of red hair with a sadistic laugh, and reached back to drag another metal chair over. Horatio heard the legs scrape against the cement floor as his brain struggled to process what he had just heard. Could this monster have really hurt Cassie? His thoughts were interrupted by another savage impact of a gun butt to his abdomen, causing multi-colored lights to flash in his eyes as he coughed and struggled to keep breathing. His lungs felt like they were on fire as he gasped to pull air into his bruised lungs.

Carlos leaned back, satisfied with the intensity of that little pistol whip, and slung one leg over the seat, straddling the chair backwards. He leaned forward against the low back, still keeping the gun in his right hand trained on the Lieutenant, but draping the other arm across the chair back and settling his chin down, enjoying the sight of his captive struggle for air and trying to mask the fearful panic at hearing his beloved girlfriend's fate.

"You wanna hear what I did to her?" He asked with a joyful grin. "Sweet little Cassandra?"

He paused to let the sound of her name permeate the air. A familiar smirk came to his face before he went on.

I'll be happy to tell you a-a-a-all about it, every detail. Even how long it took her to finally stop screaming..." Carlos paused again, and seeing the clear anguish on Horatio's face, he threw his head back and began to laugh.

The statement had hit Horatio like a ton of bricks. A flood of snapshot images of the last year rapidly flashed through his mind. Cassandra. Cassie. His Cassie. Meeting the tall brunette businesswoman at a fundraiser. The sophisticated shyness of her asking him out for dinner. The lilting sound of her voice as they talked for hours. The brilliance of her disarming smile. The way her eyes sparkled at him in candlelight. The joy of discovering a brilliant, charming, understanding and fascinating woman. The taste of her sultry kisses. The delicious sounds she made in the heated throes of passion. The warm calming effect of her arms wrapped around him… _Cassie…._

He could not bear even the thought of losing another woman that he loved… so dearly and so completely…

All his mind could keep repeating was _no… no… no… _He closed his eyes and tried to push those thoughts from his mind. The sound of his captor laughing out loud infuriated him, but there was nothing he could do about it.

Carlos soon quieted down and refocused. Horatio braced himself as best as he could for what he was coming. He now had a new focus… he had to hang on… had to not only survive, but had to save his Cassie… had to…

"She was a strong one, yes?" Carlos smiled. "Tougher than one would think for such a pretty girl."

Horatio stared at the cement floor and tried to control his breathing.

"She could take a lot of hard punches, and still keep fighting. It took a while to really wear her down," Carlos paused and cocked his head, disappointed at the distant glassy stare that his whipping boy had adopted. Maybe it was time to share some of the graphic details. That should get this uppity righteous cop's attention…

"You know, she didn't scream much," Carlos said evenly, leveling his eyes at Horatio's stock still form. "Well, not right away…"

Still nothing.

"But later, after all those hours, the pain was just too great. And she screeched and howled like a scalded dog…"

Horatio fixed his gaze at a single spot on the floor, trying to shut everything else out. _Can't let him get into my head this way… Can't…_

Carlos began to feel the first stings of frustration. He needed his vengeance fuelled. By fear, by blood, by screams, by pain, by helplessness, anything. He needed to feed off of the raw emotions of his victims. But this damn cop was shutting down.

Carlos spent the next twenty minutes spelling out everything he had done to Horatio's beloved Cassie, in graphic detail. And through it all, the red-haired cop had not broken down. Carlos began to feel pure rage blossoming up within him. Finally, he reached his boiling point.

Carlos stood up quickly and kicked his own metal chair across the room, impacting the far wall with such force that it sent up small plumes of gray smoke and sprayed several small shards of concrete in every direction.

"Do you hear me?" Carlos boomed. "Are you fucking listening to me, you arrogant prick?"

He impulsively wound up and delivered a heavy back-fist, connecting squarely with Horatio's right jaw. It snapped the bound man's head hard to the left, and brought up a fresh stream of blood from his mouth which spattered across the cold floor. Horatio's vision blurred and his head spun, but he managed to keep his grasp on the real world and not black out.

Finally tired of this game, Carlos made his decision. He took a few steps away from his gasping captive, then turned to face the chair-bound man again, reveling in the sight of the cop's pain and helplessness. He grinned again.

"Bottom line is, Lieutenant Caine," Carlos offered through his sinister grin, "your lovey-dovey girlfriend is dead. Yep, dead. I killed her myself when I was done with her."

He waited for the desired effect. And he got it. Horatio gasped softly and hung his head.

It was as if Carlos had hit him with another brutal back-fist. But it touched off an inner rage as well. Horatio gritted his teeth and gathered up every ounce of strength he had. He sat up, and fixed a blazing glare at his captor.

"And you," Horatio fumed through small, ragged breaths, "are going… to die… for that." His piercing gaze never wavered. "I.. am looking… at a dead man."

This was NOT the kind of outcome Carlos wad been looking for. Not at all. This cop was supposed to be sobbing and pleading and utterly broken… OK. Enough of this bullshit. Time for this damn uppity stubborn cop to die. Time to make him pay. Time to get his revenge.

"A dead man, huh?" Carlos raged, "You got it all wrong Caine! _I'm_ looking at a dead man!"

Carlos pointed his gun at the glaring figure strapped to the chair, and cocked the hammer. But somehow, that seemed too easy, too quick. He wanted this cop to suffer some more, not just snuff his lights out.

"You know what… _Horatio_?" Carlos sneered, "I don't need a fucking gun to kill you." He walked over and laid the gun down on the big metal desk. He began rolling up his sleeves, revealing the massive muscles in his huge arms, and slowly stalked back towards his captive victim. He put his hands on his knees and slowly lowered himself down until his face was inches from Horatio's face. The red-haired cop's icy stare never wavered.

"I will kill you… with my bare fucking hands," Carlos whispered. "And very, very slowly…"

Carlos had just began to stand up and reach for the neck of his captive, when, at that very split-second, there was a faint *click* heard… it echoed around the hard cement walls like a ricochet… It was a metallic sound, like the safety on a gun being clicked… both men heard it… and they both froze…

Carlos tore his eyes away from his prey, and slowly moved his field of vision up from the glacial stare of his captive, to the shaded doorway behind Horatio's back. And he could not believe what his eyes were showing him. No… this was not possible… I killed her… She's dead… dead…. DEAD!...

Carlos moved one hand to his waist, intending to pull his gun from his belt, but when his hand felt nothing, he then realized he had left his weapon halfway across the large room, lying on the big metal desk… well out of reach behind him…

His warped brain raced to find a way to buy himself some time to get to his gun…

"Well, well, well…." He said, slowly standing up and halfway raising his hands in mock surrender. "What have we here?"

The first thing he saw was the business end of a 9mm automatic pistol pointed at his face. It was being held steadily by the figure of a woman standing in the doorway. He immediately recognized the woman pointing the weapon at him… it was Cassie. Cassie Cordell. The woman he had brutally beaten to death before going after Caine. Or… so he thought. Clearly, she had not been dead when he had dropped her seemingly lifeless body into a dumpster, because she was standing in front of him with a fucking gun in her hand.

"Get… away… from him…" her raspy voice ordered. Carlos hesitated for a moment, but then realized that backwards would be closer to his waiting weapon. And that was exactly where he wanted to go. He slowly took a few steps backwards, away from Horatio. The gun barrel pointed at him never moved.

Carlos noticed that she was not being very aggressive… the gun was steady, but her voice… her stance… he quickly took it all in… she looked like a train wreck. Reminded him of Sissy Spacek in that movie _Carrie_. Only all the blood caked all over this woman was all her own. And her voice was thin and slightly hoarse. Probably from all of the screaming she had done. He took a minute and remembered all the punishment he had dealt her, even tormenting her by telling her where her beloved cop boyfriend was going to die. And he smiled to himself. She was badly hurt. She was weak. She shouldn't be too hard to overpower… not in her seriously damaged condition. A plan of attack began to form in his demented brain… if he could just get to his gun…

"Well if it isn't little Cassie… back from the dead I see…" he taunted, seeing the reaction that Horatio had to her name being spoken. But the bruised and bound cop could not turn around enough to see her, nor offer any sort of assistance.

"Next time I kill you," Carlos smirked, "I'm gonna have to make sure you're dead."

He took another couple small steps backwards.

"There won't be a next time… asshole," Cassie managed to say softly. "And that's far enough." She glanced down at Horatio's cuffed hands, then quickly looked back up at Carlos.

"Keys." She demanded flatly.

Carlos slowly reached into his jeans pocket and produced a ring with 2 small shiny silver keys on it. He held them up and dangled them in his fingers while flashing a half-grin at her.

"Oh, you want these, do you?" He grinned. "Well, you're gonna have to come and get them."

She didn't move.

"What's the matter, little girl?" Carlos teased. He was starting to enjoy himself again. This was going to be fun after all.

"You know," Carlos continued, "I don't know if you've looked in a mirror lately, but you…" he made a show of looking her up and down, "…are one big mess."

He pursed his lips. "Tsk, tsk, tsk… awwww. Poor little baby girl. You must be so tired. That big gun looks really heavy. You're probably gonna drop it any second."

He took 3 more steps backwards, closing a lot more of the distance between him and his own gun.

Cassie's gun did lower, just a bit, and Carlos started to laugh out loud.

Then a single shot rang out, nearly deafening in the cavernous room, and Carlos went down, clutching his right leg. His laughter quickly replaced by screams of pain.

"You fucking crazy ass bitch!" he howled, "You fucking shot me! You _shot _me God Dam it! Holy _Fuck_!" He was writhing around on the floor, the blood stain on the leg of his jeans getting bigger very quickly. "Oh, I am gonna blow your fucking _brains_ out, bitch! You _and_ your fucking cop boyfriend!"

"Not gonna happen," Cassie said evenly, managing to increase her volume enough to be heard. "Now I'll ask you again… keys."

"Fuck you!" He bellowed. Then, in one quick motion, he sprang to his feet, turned and lunged himself towards his gun, reaching it with one meaty hand. He fell to back to the floor while whirling around to bring the barrel up to fire…

Another shot rang out, but not from his gun. A crimson stain appeared in the center of Carlos' chest and began to spread rapidly, and he dropped flat on his back like a rag doll, his dead eyes glazing over, staring straight up at the ceiling. His gun and the small silver keys dropped from his hands and lay on the floor next to his lifeless body.

"Cassie?" Horatio quickly called to her as the smoke was clearing. He felt immense relief that the immediate threat was gone, but he knew they both had some serious injuries and needed some urgent medical attention, pronto.

"Hi… baby…" was her soft reply. Horatio's spirits soared at the sound of her voice.

"Cassie, it's OK sweetheart. Everything's going to be just fine now," he said calmly. "I just need those keys…"

His heart fell as he heard the sound of the woman behind him slide along the doorframe and crumple to the ground, the gun clattering softly on the floor.

"I'm… working… on it…" she gasped, her breathing sounding more and more labored. "I… Can't… breathe…"

"You gotta hang on, Cassie…" Horatio said calmly, trying to keep the worry from his voice. "The keys, sweetheart… Just get me the keys…"

Horatio heard small shuffling noises, and quickly realized that she must be crawling. He admired the fierce determination in her. One of the amazing things about this woman he loved was that she never, ever gave up. His spirits were buoyed up again by the thought of getting them both out of here. She just needed to get him those keys. He could handle the rest.

"That's it, sweetheart," he purred soothingly, "just keep going, you're almost there."

She suddenly appeared beside him, half-crawling, half-dragging herself along the floor. She never looked at him, instead keeping her eyes focused and glued to her target, intent and hell-bent on reaching it.

Horatio finally got a good look at her, and was immediately stunned into silence. His breath caught in his throat, and his heart felt like it dropped all the way down to his feet. She looked _terrible. _She was covered with cuts and bruises and caked with blood. He shuddered to think what she had already endured, and yet here she was, clawing her way across an abandoned building to save _him_. He cursed himself for being so fucking helpless as he watched her slowly but steadily make her way to her goal. He had no idea how anyone could even _survive_ such a massive amount of trauma and blood loss, much less still even be conscious.

She finally reached the keys, and without pausing for a second, she reversed direction and began to make her way back to him. Horatio swallowed hard, and found his voice again.

"Good job, Cassie…" he urged softly. "Just a little farther my love. You're doing great…"

Just short of an arm's reach from his feet, she stopped, and her body sagged just a bit as she began gasping for air, her breathing coming in short rapid gasps.

"Come on, Cassie," Horatio called to her, more urgently this time. "Come on sweetheart. Don't stop there. Just a little farther… I'm right here… come on… come to me…"

Cassie's body convulsed into a coughing fit, culminating in her spewing up a fairly impressive amount of blood, which she violently spat out onto the floor in front of her.

Her breathing calmed just a bit. "Ugh… OK… better…" she gasped, then resumed her slow trek towards her man.

Horatio breathed a sigh of relief. "Atta girl, come on love…"

She made her way around behind him, and with considerable effort, slipped the tiny keys into his waiting hand.

It didn't take long of Horatio to spring into action. Completely ignoring his own injuries, he made quick work of getting the cuffs unlocked, and ripped the few shreds of duct tape off in an instant. He launched himself towards his fallen captor, and digging into his pockets he came up with his cell phone.

He snapped it open and punched 911, rattling off instructions as he turned and headed back to where Cassie lay, crumpled on the floor behind the small metal chair.

He laid the phone down on the floor, still open, so the GPS tracking signal could be locked onto, pinpointing their exact location. Then he turned his full attention back to his injured love. He carefully moved the chair out of the way and gently rolled her over. He slipped his arm under her head, cradling her as he settled down beside her. The movement brought a small grunt and low painful moan from her throat. But she seemed to relax in his embrace, comforted by his closeness.

"Shhhh…" he said softly, "it's OK now. I've got you. Don't talk, don't move. Help is on the way. Everything is going to be OK."

He brought his other hand up and gently pulled some blood-soaked hair away from her lovely face. She fluttered her eyes open and gazed up at him, her eyes awash with pain, but he could also see her total trust and deep love for him.

He managed a gentle smile, and leaned down and whispered to her.

"I love you…"

She closed her eyes and he lay there quietly with her, hearing the faint sounds of sirens growing louder by the second. Everything was going to be OK.


	2. Chapter 2

_**Author's Note: I've been repeatedly requested to continue this particular story, which was begun quite a while ago. So… by popular demand… here goes! As always, R & R… And thanks for reading!**_

Chapter 2

Dade Memorial Hospital, ICU

Two weeks floated by for Cassie, who remained in a comatose haze for most of that time. Horatio would stop by to see his dear love as often as his Doctors would allow, but she hadn't been anywhere near conscious enough to respond to him when he was there. Countless bundles of tubes and wires connected her to banks of machines, all carefully beeping and clicking, measuring and monitoring all her vitals and keeping her heavily sedated and breathing smoothly. He had asked the Doctors if she could hear him, and their answer was that that they didn't know. It was unlikely, but possible. So he would speak softly to her when he visited, gently holding her hand, reassuring her in quiet soothing tones. Telling her that he was there by her side, and how much he loved her.

HHHHH

Horatio himself was recovering from his injuries quickly. He had given multiple statements to all the various Departments recounting his kidnapping and vengeful beating by escaped killer Carlos Montigo. And how he had learned that Cassie had also been brutally attacked by the same madman, and had been hellishly beaten and left for dead. But Cassie had miraculously showed up and managed to shoot and kill their attacker, saving both of their lives, before collapsing in a bloody heap on the floor.

Cassie had suffered major trauma and severe blood loss in the savage attack. Doctors had spent the past 2 weeks struggling to get the massive internal hemorrhaging under control, as well as treating the bruised kidneys, collapsed lung, stitching up deep lacerations, and setting several broken bones. Her condition was still serious, but no longer critical, and the Doctors were calling her a very strong woman, a true fighter, and extremely lucky.

Horatio was immeasurably glad that she was beginning to recover and strengthen physically. But he knew the hard part would be her psychological recovery. He had been told, in detail, everything she had endured in the attack. Even though there had been no sexual assault, the traumatic event was certainly going to deeply affect her, probably for a very long time. He only hoped that their relationship and their love for each other would be strong enough to get her through it all.

HHHHH

Finally after nearly 15 days, Cassie struggled to open her eyes. They felt like they were taped shut with lead. She began to slowly become aware of her surroundings. She was lying on her back, in a bed. She could hear soft, faint beeping noises. Finally, she was able to flutter her eyes open, and slowly bring the room into focus. Her throat felt hoarse and raw, and her mouth was as dry as a dust bowl. She moved her head slightly, further taking in her surroundings. And then she saw a set of beautiful blue eyes gazing back at her. She managed to smile slightly, grateful to see the loving face of Horatio Caine. He reached out and gently covered her hand with his and flashed her a brilliantly warm smile.

"Hi sweetheart," he said softly. "Welcome back."

She attempted to respond, but all she could manage was a soft moan.

"Shhh, don't talk. It's OK," Horatio continued with his soothing tone. "You're in the hospital. You're safe. And you're going to be all right."

He gently squeezed her hand with his.

"And I'm going to stay right here with you," Horatio spoke quietly as he reached out and lightly ran his fingers across her forehead and down the side of her face. It felt so good to once again see the warm gaze of the woman he loved so dearly. "You just relax, and get some rest. OK? I'm right here."

She moaned softly again, and nodded ever so slightly, before closing her eyes again and drifting back into a hazy sleep.

HHHHH

More weeks passed, and Cassie slowly improved and got stronger. Her condition was upgraded again, and she had been moved from ICU to a private room on the 4th floor, overlooking a small wooded park.

Morning sunlight was streaming into the room, which was crammed full of cards, flowers, balloons and cuddly little stuffed animals.

Horatio Caine sat in the easy chair next to her bed, chatting softly with her. She still had several casts on various limbs, the largest one was a plaster-covered leg, which was elevated on a short stack of pillows. Horatio had long since been discharged after recovering from his injuries, but with the full support and backing of his CSI team and the entire Department, he had decided to take some of the Leave of Absence time he had amassed, so he could be with Cassie 24-7. She was the one who needed him the most right now, and he was grateful that he could be there for her.

"Lunch will be coming around soon," Horatio offered.

"Ugh, more hospital food," Cassie grumbled. "Medallions of cardboard with lawn mower sauce. I'm _so_ not hungry."

Horatio chuckled softly, then gave her an understanding smile. "You know have to eat. You need your strength."

Cassie turned and smiled back at him. "I know, I know," she sighed. "I will. I just these people knew how to cook some real food."

The lunch tray came and Horatio helped her eat. She stiffened and winced a few times during the meal, as little bolts of pain would crop up and make themselves known. So once the tray was taken away, the nurse gave her a pain killer and within 10 minutes Cassie had drifted off into a comfortable afternoon nap.

Horatio picked up the TV remote and settled into the big chair next to her.

So far, her physical injuries were healing nicely. But what struck him as rather odd, is that Cassie appeared to have no psychological issues. None whatsoever. Horatio had been right there with her when she had given her statements, anticipating some kind of emotional trauma or possible breakdown at any moment. But aside from some very tearful recounting of events and a slight tremble in her voice, Cassie had bravely verbalized everything that had happened to her, in specific detail. Horatio marveled at her strength, but he had to admit to himself that the apparent emotional detachment was worrying him.

She had been visited by a shrink, a psycho-therapist, and a trauma counselor who was a specialist in post-traumatic stress. She had spoken and shared her experience with them all, at length. And they had all given her a completely clean bill of mental health. It was nothing less than astounding. Cassie had not even experienced so much as a bad dream.

Horatio was happy that she seemed to be coping so incredibly well, but a part of him was still more worried than ever. He would watch her closely at times, looking for any wavering or instability, but never saw anything except the same sweet Cassie he knew and loved. But, in the back of his mind, he was waiting for it. He didn't know when or how it would manifest itself, but at some point, the other shoe had to drop. And he vowed to himself that he would be there, to help her through it.

HHHHH

More time passed. Two of Cassie's casts came off of her wrists and arms, and her ribcage had healed enough for to lose the back brace. She still had that big clunker of a cast on her left leg, which ran from her toes all the way to her hip. She would get frustrated with her lack of mobility, but she was delighted that at least with her newly found upper body freedom, that she could now feed herself, brush her own hair, and wield control over the TV remote. Things were going very well, and the Doctors decided on releasing her at the end of the week.

Things were going so well in fact, that Horatio briefly considered going back to work. But, he decided he would wait until Cassie was stabilized and comfortable at home. He talked it over with her, and they both agreed that when she was released, she would stay with Horatio at his place until she was fully healed. It made sense, and besides, they had been talking about moving in together anyway, only a few weeks before the attack. She was visited again by the shrink as well as the PTSD specialist, and still, there were no signs of any emotional issues.

Horatio had seen so many trauma victims, and while it was true that every individual dealt with it differently, he had to admit that he had never seen anything like this.

So despite being happy and excited for her to be released, there was still a small voice of worry nibbling at him…


	3. Chapter 3

Chapter 3

The Friday morning of Cassie's release from the hospital finally arrived. Bright sunshine flooded the room as nurses bustled in and out, helping box up all the cards and balloons and gifts to make it easier for Cassie to transport them all home. The huge cast on her leg had been replaced by a smaller one, much more manageable, and she had been only recently been shakily learning to thump around the room for brief spurts of time with a pair of heavily padded crutches.

Finally, all the cumbersome paperwork was completed, and the wheelchair arrived to take her downstairs.

Horatio gave her a warm kiss just before leaving the room to go pull the car around to the front of the building, she responded with a warm smile. Cassie settled herself into the wheelchair, and the heavyset male nurse began slowly navigating down the hall towards the elevators.

And that's when she felt it… a crushing wave of sheer panic.

It didn't come on gradually, it was horrifyingly sudden.

It felt like being totally relaxed in the middle of a quiet field of flowers, and then casually looking upwards, and seeing a cement truck falling out of the sky right on top of you…

Her chest tightened up, her vision narrowed, and she couldn't seem to get enough air into her lungs. Suddenly the thought of getting into a small claustrophobic elevator and leaving the calming sanctuary of this safe place absolutely terrified her. _NO! No, no, no, no, no… _Her mind began to wail.

"S-st-stop..stop…" she stammered, her hands beginning to shake. The big nurse pushing her halted and leaned around in front of her with a concerned look. He saw the look of sheer terror on this lovely woman's face and immediately tried to help calm her down. He knelt down and began to speak soothingly to her, trying to reassure her. But it did nothing to help. He could have easily overpowered her, but realizing that doing so would probably cause much more harm than good, he remained as non-threatening as he could and kept trying to get her to calm down. But he was rapidly losing that fight...

Cassie's head was spinning. She was gasping for air, nearly paralyzed with fear. Everything and everyone around her now seemed like a monstrous, immediate threat. Logic flew out the window, replaced by nothing but a core survival instinct. And rational thought as a whole was making a rapid exit as well...

_Get away… Must… get… away. Somewhere... safe…_ Her thoughts screamed at her.

She was now completely gripped in the throes of a full-blown panic attack. With flailing arms, she shoved away the big hands of the nurse trying to help, and hauled herself down out of the wheelchair. The big orderly winced as he heard the heavy thump of her body making contact with the polished tile floor. He continued trying to calm her down, but she absolutely refused any assistance. She swiveled her head around looking for any kind of refuge, but saw only danger and deadly threats. She desperately wanted a place to curl up and hide...

Frantically looking around again, her panicked brain targeted a spot...

She was breathing rapidly and tears stung her eyes as she quickly began dragging her back side along the shiny floor towards the only safe haven she could see. Making pitiful sounds that were nothing more than whimpers, she scuttled herself across the floor, everyone watching and moving out of her way. She scurried around the corner, and proceeded to burrow herself under the wide nurse's station desk, in behind the wastebasket, and then became nearly hysterical. She wouldn't allow anyone to come anywhere near her.

Except for her casted leg which she had to keep straight, she curled herself into a tight little shivering ball and began rocking back and forth, while an unstoppable flow of tears coursed down her face. She melted into a sobbing heap on the floor.

HHHHH

Down in front of the hospital, Horatio gave an impatient sigh as he looked up at the side of the beige concrete building. He couldn't imagine what was taking so long.

His cell phone rang and grabbed for it, annoyed. Without even looking at the caller ID, he flipped it open. "Caine."

There were only a few words spoken, but the look on his face changed immediately. And seconds later, he had snapped his phone shut and was charging full bore through the hospital lobby like a crazed bull. He had one singular goal in his mind: the 4th floor. He had to get there as quickly as possible…

He charged across the lobby and was about to launch himself up the stairs, but heard the familiar 'ding' of the elevator just as he rounded that corner, and saw the green arrow pointing UP. He shoved the waiting riders out of his way, hearing a chorus of startled gasps. He lunged into the empty elevator car and stabbed the '4' button repeatedly. "Police," he said quickly, flashing the gold badge clipped to his belt. "Take the next one," he finished as the doors slid shut and the car swooshed upwards…

He had been right… The other shoe had finally dropped… And Cassie desperately needed him…

HHHHH

It didn't take him long to get there. Once the elevator doors had opened, he bolted into the hallway, and several nurses were showing the way, pointing to the nurse's station desk. There was a small crown of curious on-lookers gathered around, all peering at the spectacle huddled down behind the wastebasket. One of the Doctors was there, and had ordered up a syringe filled with a sedative, and was slowly approaching Cassie with it. Horatio stepped up and took control, stopping him.

"Hang on a minute, Doc," Horatio said sternly. "Let's not do anything extreme. Everybody just calm down. Let me talk to her."

The Doc capitulated and backed up.

Horatio slowly came around behind the desk, and felt his heart break at the sight of his terrified love.

He gently knelt down in front of her. "Cassie... Sweetheart…" and that's as far as he got.

Cassie heard his voice, and responded instantly.

"Horatio…" She choked out, and her head snapped up. She looked up at him through frightened bloodshot eyes, and then launched herselfstraight into his arms with startling ferocity, burying her face in his chest and nearly knocking him over.

Horatio wrapped his arms around her, and held her tightly as the chocking sobs shook her slender body.

"I.. I don't… want to… g-go…" she stammered, "go… out…side…"

"Shhhh…" he soothed, "it's OK. I'm here. There's nothing to be afraid of…."

Her breathing was coming in ragged shallow gasps. "P-p-please… not… outside…"

"OK, OK... Calm down Cassie," he cooed, "just calm down sweetheart. You're safe. No one is going to hurt you. And you don't have to go anywhere that you don't want to go."

She seemed to settle down just a little bit. He shifted slightly on the floor so he could hold her close and gently stroke her hair. Gradually, her sobs began to subside, and her breathing started to return to normal.

"That's my girl," he said, planting soft kisses on her hair. "Why don't we just stay right here for a little while. Until we can figure all this out. OK?"

His question was met with an enthusiastic nod of her head.

And they did. Horatio held her in his arms as the hospital around them slowly began to return to normal. Horatio's mind began working furiously. So this was how her trauma was apparently going to manifest itself...

His body stayed still, arms wrapped protectively and lovingly around the shivering woman clinging to him. But his mind was racing, wondering what he could do to help his beloved Cassie…


End file.
